Chapter 78: So That's How It Is

So That's How It Is

Yin Fengzhan's voice was chillingly gloomy, and the underlying threat made one's heart grow cold. But Nie Jinxuan, upon hearing this, was stunned for a moment before raising her hand to push him away.

"Yin Fengzhan, who are you saying is having an affair?"

"Don't you know best who I am talking about?"

"You..."

In front of everyone, Nie Jinxuan began to argue quietly with Yin Fengzhan. Nie Jinxuan was so angry that her eyes widened.

But then, Nie Jinxuan calmed down, raised her hand to tidy up the clothes that had been wrinkled by Yin Fengzhan, and smiled coldly.

"Hmph, who would have thought that you, Yin Fengzhan, would actually be afraid of being cuckolded!"

Contrary to her previous anger, Nie Jinxuan spoke with composure. After speaking, she even looked up at Yin Fenglian, who was sitting diagonally opposite, in front of Yin Fengzhan. At this moment, Yin Fenglian, as if he had eyes on the top of his head, also looked at Nie Jinxuan at this time...

Their eyes met, and both smiled slightly. Seeing all this, Yin Fengzhan's expression tightened sharply. But just as Yin Fengzhan wanted to say something, he heard Nie Jinxuan, who was still smiling faintly, whisper,

"Yin Fengzhan, you are truly childish! Do you think that when a woman looks at a man other than her own husband, it means she is having an affair?! Let me tell you, if a woman really wanted to have an affair, she wouldn't let you see it!"

Looking at Yin Fenglian with her eyes, Nie Jinxuan spoke quietly to Yin Fengzhan beside her. But after saying this, Nie Jinxuan stopped and turned to meet the deep eyes of the man beside her.

"So, do you know why I was looking at him? I'll tell you the truth: he is the man I told you about before! The one who took me to the Ministry of Punishments to help Mo Yujue that night!"

Nie Jinxuan finally told the truth. When these words came out, Yin Fengzhan's face was indeed stunned for a moment. But in the blink of an eye, he recovered, looked up at Yin Fenglian, who was talking to someone else, and then withdrew his gaze.

"Are you sure?"

"Of course! Otherwise, why do you think I was looking at him?"

Unable to bear it, she rolled her eyes at Yin Fengzhan, and then Nie Jinxuan lowered her eyes and said no more. Seeing her like this, Yin Fengzhan pursed his lips and didn't ask anything more. But his deep eyes were filled with hidden ripples.

Perhaps because not everyone had arrived yet, the Emperor didn't say anything during the banquet, so the banquet passed without incident.

Of course, there were small ripples. For example, several concubines were fighting and scheming against each other, and finally, the Emperor spoke up to suppress them. Or the Crown Prince, Yin Fenghan, finding excuses to talk to Yin Fengzhan, but Yin Fengzhan only replied coldly a few times and then remained silent.

Yin Fengzhan didn't give the Crown Prince much face, but he didn't make him look too bad either. So, in this atmosphere that seemed harmonious but was filled with eeriness, the banquet finally came to an end. After the Emperor, Empress Duan, Noble Consort Zhang, and some concubines left, the royal family members sitting below also stood up to leave.

But just then, just as Yin Fengzhan had stood up, he saw the Third Prince, the Prince of Yun, Yin Fengjin, walk over with a wine glass.

"Haha~, what? Is Fourth Brother leaving already?"

Yin Fengjin called out to Yin Fengzhan and walked over to him in a few long strides. But seeing Yin Fengjin come over, Yin Fengzhan just glanced at him and continued to turn to leave... but just then, Yin Fengjin took a side step and blocked Yin Fengzhan's way.

"Haha, what's the rush, Fourth Brother? What, you won't even give me the face to have a drink with me?"

"Yin Fengjin, what are you trying to do again?"

Yin Fengjin was clearly ill-intentioned. But before Yin Fengzhan could speak, Yin Fengxuan, standing beside him, rushed over.

The Emperor had seven princes in total. Except for the Seventh Prince, Yin Fengyang, who was not yet an adult, the other six princes could be divided into three factions.

One faction was the Crown Prince, Yin Fenghan, and his follower, the Prince of Yun, Yin Fengjin; one faction was Prince Chen, Yin Fengzhan, and the Prince of Gong, Yin Fengxuan, who had been close to him since childhood; and the last faction was the Prince of Qin, Yin Fenglian, and the Prince of Rui, Yin Fengxiang!

And among these three factions, each had its own characteristics. The Crown Prince faction, led by Yin Fenghan, had the highest status in the court and the most followers because of Empress Duan and Yin Fenghan's status as Crown Prince. But in terms of ability, Prince Chen, Yin Fengzhan, was a well-known powerhouse in the court. Therefore, although Yin Fengzhan lacked the strong background of the Crown Prince and the status of Crown Prince himself, he still had many solid supporters in the court. As for the last faction, the Prince of Qin, Yin Fenglian, and the Prince of Rui, Yin Fengxiang, although they had no relationship, they were grouped together because neither of them cared about state affairs!

Of course, although both didn't care about state affairs, there was a difference between the Prince of Qin, Yin Fenglian, and the Prince of Rui, Yin Fengxiang. Yin Fenglian had made the world of martial arts his home since he was a child, so rather than being a member of the royal family, he was more like a martial artist. He often disappeared for ten days or half a month, living the life of a hermit, so he didn't even touch the edges of state affairs.

Compared to Yin Fenglian's freedom and spontaneity, the Prince of Rui, Yin Fengxiang, was a sickly person since childhood. Although he had improved after reaching adulthood, he was still a sickly person who rarely left his residence. So, let alone participating in state affairs, he rarely even left his residence.

Therefore, setting aside the hermit Prince of Qin, Yin Fenglian, and the sickly Prince of Rui, Yin Fengxiang, the court of Dongling was primarily a confrontation between the Crown Prince faction and the Prince Chen faction.

So, it was not difficult to understand why the Prince of Yun, Yin Fengjin, would specifically come to find trouble with Yin Fengzhan at this time.

At this moment, seeing the Prince of Gong, Yin Fengxuan, stand out, Yin Fengjin glanced at him with disdain and curled his lips into a mocking smile.

"I am talking to Fourth Brother; it would be better for unrelated people to stay away!"

Yin Fengjin did not take Yin Fengxuan seriously. Hearing this, Yin Fengxuan, who had a fiery temper, glared at him. But just as he was about to rush up to settle the score with Yin Fengjin, Yin Fengzhan, who had been silent, stopped him.

"Fourth Brother?! Let me go, I'm not finished with him! Fourth Brother..."

Not expecting Yin Fengzhan to stop him, Yin Fengxuan shouted in anger. But Yin Fengzhan just looked at Yin Fengxuan with deep eyes and then turned to look at the Prince of Yun, Yin Fengjin.

"Does the Prince of Yun have something to say?"

"Haha~ can't I come to talk to Fourth Brother if I have nothing to say?"

Seeing Yin Fengzhan finally speak, Yin Fengjin responded with a smile and then continued,

"However, speaking of which, I heard recently that the relationship between Fourth Brother and Fourth Sister-in-law has eased quite a bit. I thought it was just rumors from the streets, but I didn't expect it to be true... Haha~, sorry, Fourth Sister-in-law, I speak directly, please don't take it to heart~!"

Yin Fengjin's words were strange. At the same time, he turned his gaze to Nie Jinxuan, who was standing beside Yin Fengzhan. For Nie Jinxuan, although she didn't fully understand the political confrontation behind the Crown Prince and Yin Fengzhan, she could still see some clues from the situation.

So, thinking of this, Nie Jinxuan couldn't help but move her eyebrows, then secretly shook off Yin Fengzhan's hand that wanted to pull her behind him, and stepped forward.

"Thank you for your concern, Prince of Yun. However, instead of worrying about this, Prince of Yun had better care more about state affairs! After all, it is better for us to handle matters between husband and wife ourselves, don't you think~!"

Nie Jinxuan spoke gently, but her words were clearly not polite. Hearing this, Yin Fengjin, who had been smiling, was stunned for a moment, and a flash of gloom appeared in his eyes, but it vanished instantly.

"Uh... haha~, Fourth Sister-in-law is truly quick-witted, I like it. Alright, since Fourth Sister-in-law says so, I won't say anything more~!"

"Is that so? Then thank you, Prince of Yun!"

"Haha~ no need, no need..."

Speaking polite words, Yin Fengjin now focused all his attention on Nie Jinxuan. But after saying this, Yin Fengjin couldn't help but narrow his eyes.

"However, if I were to say, the reason I specifically called out Fourth Brother today is actually because there is something I want to ask Fourth Sister-in-law... I wonder if Fourth Sister-in-law would do me the honor of answering?"

Before, Yin Fengjin had called out to Yin Fengzhan for no reason, and Nie Jinxuan had always felt it was strange. But at this moment, she finally understood his purpose!

So, hearing this, Nie Jinxuan looked up at Yin Fengzhan beside her, but seeing his unmoving expression, she pursed her lips and smiled slightly.

"Oh? Prince of Yun has something to ask me? I wonder what it is that made Prince of Yun go to such great lengths?"

"Haha... a small matter, just a small matter."

As he spoke, Yin Fengjin couldn't help but smile lightly again and then said in a low voice,

"Actually, I heard that a few days ago, there was a fire at the Rongxin Yuan in the palace, and Concubine Lan was murdered. It is said that someone framed Noble Consort Zhang, but in the end, it was Fourth Sister-in-law who stood up in front of the Emperor and proved Noble Consort Zhang's innocence... Haha, so after hearing this, I was very curious: does Fourth Sister-in-law know how to examine corpses? Otherwise, how did you know that Concubine Lan was not burned to death, but died before the fire started?"

Yin Fengjin asked naturally, but hearing this, Nie Jinxuan couldn't help but sneer in her heart.

Hmph, just as I thought!

Nie Jinxuan thought to herself, but her expression remained unchanged. After Yin Fengjin finished speaking, Nie Jinxuan smiled peacefully.

"Haha~, I didn't expect Prince of Yun to be so well-informed, even knowing exactly how Concubine Lan died..."

Although she knew saying this wouldn't be of much use, she still sarcastically remarked a few times before saying,

"However, since Prince of Yun has asked, I won't keep you in suspense. Actually, the reason I know how to examine corpses is just that I learned some forensic techniques from Master Meng of the Ministry of Punishments before... Haha, but compared to Master Meng's exquisite skills, I only know a little bit."

It seemed that if Yin Fengzhan hadn't said so before, Nie Jinxuan wouldn't have answered so easily. But it was also at this moment that Nie Jinxuan suddenly realized: could it be that Yin Fengzhan had anticipated that someone would ask her this, so he had prepared an excuse for her in advance?!

Such a thought flashed through Nie Jinxuan's mind. So, Nie Jinxuan couldn't help but look up at Yin Fengzhan. At this moment, hearing Nie Jinxuan's explanation, the Prince of Yun, Yin Fengjin, was stunned for a moment, then narrowed his eyes.

"Oh?! So Fourth Sister-in-law's forensic skills were learned from Meng Xian of the Ministry of Punishments?"

"Haha~, what? Does Prince of Yun not believe me? If you don't believe me, you can go and ask Master Meng! See if I am lying!"

"Uh... since Fourth Sister-in-law says so, what reason do I have not to believe you? Haha, but it truly surprises me that Fourth Sister-in-law is actually Meng Xian's disciple~."

"Haha~, I wouldn't call myself a disciple, just killing time when I have nothing to do!"

"Oh, so that's how it is~!"

Yin Fengjin showed an "oh, so that's how it is" expression and then laughed out loud again.

"Since that's the case, then there's no mistake... Haha, I'm truly sorry, it was just because of my curiosity that I held Fourth Brother and Fourth Sister-in-law for so long, I am truly ashamed! So, if you don't mind, I would like to toast Fourth Brother and Fourth Sister-in-law with this cup!"

At this moment, Yin Fengjin showed his boldness. After speaking, he handed the cup of wine he had been holding to Yin Fengzhan. Because Nie Jinxuan was a woman, she naturally could only use tea instead of wine in this situation, so Yin Fengjin signaled for the servants to serve tea to Nie Jinxuan.

But at this moment, seeing Yin Fengjin hand the wine cup to Yin Fengzhan, Nie Jinxuan couldn't help but move her eyebrows and snatched the cup of wine.

"Prince of Yun, I think you might not know that my husband has recently developed a rash, so he cannot drink wine. Otherwise, Prince of Yun, please look, my husband hasn't touched any of the wine on the table."

Holding the wine, Nie Jinxuan let Yin Fengjin look at the banquet table beside them, and sure enough, he saw that Yin Fengzhan hadn't touched any of the wine at all.

Seeing this, Yin Fengjin was a bit stunned, but then he heard Nie Jinxuan say,

"However, since Prince of Yun has said so, we naturally cannot refuse your good intentions. So if Prince of Yun doesn't mind, let me drink this cup of wine on behalf of my husband. It can be considered as thanking Prince of Yun for your concern for us!"

Nie Jinxuan spoke naturally. Hearing her say this, Yin Fengjin naturally wouldn't say anything. But at this moment, Yin Fengzhan, who had been silent, glanced at her and frowned slightly.

At this moment, Nie Jinxuan didn't act coy. Hearing Yin Fengjin respond with a smile, she brought the wine cup to her lips and drank it in one gulp, then elegantly turned the empty wine cup upside down.

"Thank you for the wine, Prince of Yun, I..."

Nie Jinxuan said softly, but just as she was about to finish her sentence, her body went limp and she collapsed...